One of the many joys of country life is experiencing all kinds of critters.
Rabbits, armadillos, opossums, and deer are regular sightings on our dirt road. While I enjoy watching these animals, my favorite is the turkey. I don’t know what it is about turkeys. When I drive up behind one in the road, he runs straight ahead. Of course, I can’t just follow slowly and watch the bird run. I have to hit the gas and crowd him.
The closer I get, the faster and more panicked the turkey becomes. He zigzags, and his fast trot turns into a quicker run. Closer and closer, I inch toward the turkey. Suddenly, he remembers he has wings, makes a few flaps, and is up and out of the range of my bumper.
Now, for all you animal lovers, I would never intentionally hit a turkey. I just enjoy reminding him he can fly.
The more I watch this scenario, I see the similarities between us and these forgetful birds. When stuff comes at us or life gets hard, we don’t know what to do. Instead of thinking through it, we panic. Fear sets in and we run. We feel inadequate to face the trial. The mountain seems too high to climb. We zigzag all over the place as our emotions lead the way. And just before we are overtaken, we look to Jesus and remember we can fly.
Why does it take us so long to remember we can fly? Why do we let our emotions and fears rule us instead of tapping into the Savior, the true giver of our strength? Only we know. But we should never wait until the pressure gets too high. We know what it takes to get us through, so we should go to Him first, not last. We can flap our wings early in the game instead of forgetting where our strength comes from.
Don’t be like those forgetful turkeys. Remember that with Jesus you can fly.
(Photo courtesy of pixabay.)
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Christy Bass Adams is a mother of two boys. She uses her past classroom experience to teach future educators at Saint Leo University and at North Florida College. Christy serves as the Outreach and Connections Coordinator of Fellowship Baptist Church in Madison, Florida. She also writes a weekly inspirational column in Greene Publishing and maintains a regular blog. When she isn’t teaching or writing, you can find her sitting by the fire, wetting a line in the river, or spending time with her boys. For more from Christy, visit her blog: www.christybassadams.com.